Good Guy EA discontinues Online Pass program

In a moment of sudden clarity, Electronic Arts has told GamesBeat that they won't require an "online pass" in its future games. The publisher started using online passes in late 2009, which uses one-time-use codes to access certain online features in its games. It was a way to encourage gamers to buy new copies of games instead of used. If you did purchase a used game, you would then have to buy an online pass for $10 to access that game's online features and multiplayer.

Essentially, it was a way for them to make money from the used games market.

Now, EA senior director of corporate communications John Reseburg said to Gamesbeat that "many players didn't respond to the format. We've listened to the feedback and decided to do away with it moving forward." Take that everyone that voted EA the worst company in America for 2012!

To be fair, EA wasn't the only publisher to use an online pass system -- Activision and Ubisoft also use one.

I'm happy EA has done away with the online pass, as I'm sure many of you are as well.

But allow me to play devil's advocate: what if the reason they've done away with the online pass is because next-gen consoles won't be able to play used games?

You can follow Senior Editor Lance Liebl on Twitter @Lance_GZ. He likes talking sports, video games, movies, and the stupidity of celebrities. Email at LLiebl@GameZone.com